I. INTRODUCTION TO COMPARATIVES

We as humans have a tendency to compare things. Who is richer? What is bigger? What is the least expensive. It's a helpful tool and one we often use. While some comparisons are better left unsaid, they are something that, rightly or wrongly, we often do. So, we need language tools to communicate our comparisons.

English language comparatives give us a chance to communicate the similarities and differences between things. Yet, when we look at differences, it doesn't have to be a distinct black-and-white sort of comparison of exact opposites; instead, it can be more nuanced, looking at something in between.

In real life, things are rarely exact opposites or exactly the same, and we have an obligation to provide a more accurate, and sometimes more sensitive, picture of the realities of comparisons. Having a full toolbox of language tools to do this is important.